Jackson Fans Moved by Memorial

July 7, 2009 -- Fans who were lucky enough to score tickets
to Michael Jackson's memorial service Tuesday knew they were
witnessing history.
"It was amazing," said 35-year-old Gregory Vernon, who wore
sunglasses as he walked solemnly out of Staples Center after the
service. "We'll probably never see anything like it again."
Two stay-at-home moms from Arizona left their kids with their
husbands and caught a last-minute flight to attend the memorial.
"Love him or hate him, this is the experience of a lifetime,"
said 38-year-old Carly Stoltenberg of Gilbert, Ariz. "This brought
back his humanness."
Her friend Katey McPhearson said the service, like the man it
memorialized, "totally transcended all races, all cultures, all
ages."
Erma Trinidad of Irvine, Calif., was thrilled to be among the
fans outside Staples, but she felt guilty for calling in sick to
her job as a defense contractor.
"This is the most unprofessional I've ever been," said the
34-year-old Jackson fan.
Clarisse Que was feeling guilty, too. Instead of inviting her
father to the memorial, she took a friend, Trinidad.
"I'm DVR-ing it for my dad," Que said.
Fans gathered outside Staples beforehand to snap photos of the
scene, the giant sympathy card for Jackson and a tribute in red and
white roses that read, "We love you Michael."
Guests were mostly orderly as they moved through metal
detectors. Each was handed a program, submitted to a check of their
purses or packages and shuffled into the giant arena. Once inside,
audience members mostly remained seated and sedate.
But they also cheered the arrival of celebrities such as the
Rev. Jesse Jackson and Kobe Bryant. Once the ceremony began, they
stood and sang along with Mariah Carey and Trey Lorenz, who
reprised their cover of the Jackson 5's "I'll Be There," and gave
a standing ovation to Stevie Wonder, who sang George Michael's
"They Won't Go When I Go."
The ceremony had all the trappings of any big Hollywood show,
relying on Grammy producer Ken Ehrlich and veteran stage manager
Valdez Flagg, who works on the Oscars and Grammys.
But plenty of people without tickets to enjoy the spectacle
still made the pilgrimage downtown. Fans crowded the corner just
outside the police perimeter, where more than 20 uniformed officers
kept watch. Dozens of street vendors also were in the mix, selling
buttons, posters, T-shirts, bouquets and glittery gloves.
"Show your love, get a glove," a woman shouted, carrying a
cardboard box of spangled white gloves.
Single mom Tamanika Hines made her own Jackson tribute T-shirt
and asked her son's father to watch the baby so she could come to
the memorial. Her friend, Sharhon Tinsley, took the day off from
her day care job to attend.
"Everyone knows this is my Michael Jackson day," she said.
Andrea Hernandez of Los Angeles said she was looking forward to
seeing photos of Jackson at the memorial: "I like how he looked
when he was younger."
The 21-year-old Hernandez was also excited that Jackson's body
would be at the service, "only because it makes it that much more
special. Spiritually ... he's here. But physically, it's just like,
whoa. It makes it that much more powerful. It's something that I'll
tell my kids about."
Norma Paramo of Fontana, Calif., said she used to sing "I'll Be
There," translated into Spanish, to her aunt who raised her.
"He was a hero for me as I was growing up," Paramo said of
Jackson. "When there was hard times, his music would make me feel
happy. I could get lost in his music and forget about everything we
were going through, and I'm going to miss him."
She wiped away tears as she said, "This will be closure for
me."